Official Community Plan open house gives residents their say in PA’s future

Attendees could peruse stations in City Hall’s foyer, each one representing a different aspect of city planning, from cultural and economic development to the redevelopment of Victoria Hospital.

One of the most popular displays was a hand drawn map of Prince Albert that let people mark down their favourite city spots with post-it notes. By the end of the event it was well covered.

To Lenore Swystun, founder of Prairie Wild Consulting and who created the map, it let people label what captures the essence of Prince Albert for them.

“Think of it as a mind map that brings across all the different dimensions of what makes Prince Albert Prince Albert,” she explained.

The community map will help structure many policies and strategic actions the city will undertake to best bring Prince Albert together.

The other major attraction was a computer visualization of the dual left turn that is currently under construction at the intersection of 15th St. and 2nd Ave. W. Displayed on a projector it highlighted how timing patterns for the intersection were determined.

The visualization was achieved by placing cameras over the intersection that counted traffic. The cameras have been in place for the last eight months, but information for the visualization was only taken from one day.

“Of course it’s a computer model so it’s always assuming the best,” said Keri Sapsford, Prince Albert’s city transportation manager.

Another hot topic was mockups of what the city would like to do in the areas along the river. Artists’ rendering of trendy and populous shopping areas shows that city council is looking to turn the river area into a thriving commercial centre.

Signs with the renderings emphasized that no location has been determined yet. There was also no set date for when city council wanted to begin rejuvenating the river area.

The OCP falls in the middle of ward meetings where the city talks to ward residents about what they want to see in their neighbourhoods.

In the three meetings held so far some of the major issues mentioned so far include walkability, bike paths and road conditions.

There is six more community planning meetings scheduled for September and October.

A full list of the meetings can be found on the cities website.

ssterritt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @spencer_sterrit

by Spencer Sterritt

Official Community Plan open house gives residents their say in PA’s future

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